Grain-door for cars.



J. EDMAN.

GRAIN DOOR FOR CARS. APPLICATION rIL sD MAY 8, 1901.

Patented Oct. 27, 1908.

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GRAIN DOOR FOB. CARS. A'PPLiGATIoN FILED AY 8, 1907.

Patented Oct. 27, 1908.

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J. EDMAN.

GRAIN DOOR FOR CARS. APPLICATION FILED MAY 8, 1907.

901,959. Patented 0011.27 ,1908.

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11251209306 IlYI EHTQH Erma/12701111616- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN EDMAN, or MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, Assic-Non or ONE-EIGHTH TocHAELEs DAHL, ONE-FOURTH TO ALFRED M. HOVLAND, AND ONE-EIGHTH TO EDWARDe. DAHL, ALL or MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

GRAIN-DOOR FOR CARS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 27, 1908.

Application filed May 8, 1907. Serial No. 372,494.

to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such aswill enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make anduse the same.

My invention has for its object to provide an improved grain door and isespecially directed to the improvement of that type of grain doordisclosed and claimed in my pending application S. N. 350,361, filed January 2, 1907, entitled Grain door for cars.

The invention consists of the novel devices and combinations of deviceshereinafter described and defined in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate the invention, likecharacters indicate like parts. throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a view in side elevation, showingthe central portion of a car having my improved grain door, so-called,applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken on the line a 00 ofFig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail in front elevation of certain ofthe parts shown in Figs. 1 and 6. Fig. 4 is a horizontal section takenon the line :0 m of Fig. 1, some parts being broken away. Fig. 5 is afragmentary detail partlyin plan and partly in horizontal section,showing the mechanism for operating the door securing devices; and Fig.6 is a skeleton view in elevation with parts broken away and with someparts sectioned on the line m 00 of Fig. 4.

The numeral 1 indicates the car body having at its sides the usual dooropenings formed between posts 2. Rigidly secured to the inner edges ofthe door posts 2 are stop cleats shown as formed by metal plates 3 thatextend preferably about half way up on the said posts.

Located adjacent to the inner surface of the door posts 2 and justinward of the stop cleats 3 are vertically disposed oscillatory shafts,shown in the form of tubes 4 and provided with radially extended lockblades 5. The upper ends of these shafts 4 are journaled on bearings 6secured to the top members 19 on said door sections.

of the door frame and at their lower ends they are provided with rigidlysecured sleeves 7 having depending shafts 8 that are journaled inbearing brackets 9 secured to the bottom of the car below the floorthereof.

As best shown in Figs. 5 and 6, the sleeves 7 are formed with projectingarms 10 that are connected by links 11 to the opposite end portions of alever 12, which latter is intermediately pivoted to a bearing 13 in thebottom of the car below the floor thereof.

One end of the lever 12 is connected by a 'rod 14 to the depending arm15 of an operating lever 16, which lever is pivoted to a bearing 16 onthe under surface of the car floor. The lever 16 is located in avertical plane adjacent to the outer surface of one of the door posts 2.By means of this lever oscillatory movements of the tubular shafts 4 inreverse directions may be simultaneously imparted thereto.

The numeral 17 indicates the main section of the so-called grain door,which door is of such width that it will swing between the tubularshafts 4 when the said shafts ivhen the operating lever 16 is locked orheld in the position shown in Figs. 4 and 6.

To the main section 17 of the grain door a supplemental hinged section17 a is pivotally connected by a transversely extended hinge rod 18 thatis passed through hinge This hinge rod 18 is of greater length than thewidth of the door opening, and its ends are bent to form eyes 20 thatare adapted to slide upon laterally spaced guide rods 21.

These guide rods 21 are provided with vertically extended lowerportions, the lower ends of which are rigidly secured to the door posts2, and they are provided with horizontally extended upper ends which, asshown, are secured to the overhead beams of the car body.

When it is desired to completely close the door opening, an additionalpart section 17 b is provided. This part section 17 like the doorsections 17 and 17 is adapted to be completely closed, so that with adoor of this kind an outside car door is not required.

Secured to the inner surface of the upper transverse door of the doorframe, is a channel-like door supporting strip 24. Then the door section17 is not in use, it may be slid upward on the guide rods 23 and itsfree edge may then be rested upon the upper flange of the supportingstrip 24, thereby supporting the said door section in its inoperativeposition, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2, where it is entirely outof the way. When the door sections 17 and 17 are not required in thedoor opening, they may be moved into inoperative positions and theresecured, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2 by reference to which itwill be seen that the hinge rod 18 has then been slid upward on theguide rods 21, and serves to support the inner portion of the foldeddoor, while the free edge of the door section 17 is supported byengagement with the lower flange of the supporting strip 24.

The door sections 17, 17 and 17 respectively, have secured thereto neartheir ends, vertically alined metallic lock strips 25, 25 and 25 Thelock bar 26 is mounted on the outer surface of the lock blade 5 of eachtubular rock shaft 1, and extends approximately from top to bottom ofthe door opening. These lock bars 26 are connected to the respectivelock blades 5 by headed studs 27 on said blades that work throughoblique slots 28 in said lock bars 26. These look bars 26 are providedwith small obliquely projecting lock bolts or teeth 29 that are adaptedto enter through perforations in the adjacent vertically alined lockstrips 25, 25 and 25.

hen the lock bars 26 are raised they are, by the slots 28, caused tomove laterally toward the cooperating lock strips 25, 25 25 and theirbolts or teeth 29 are caused to project through the perforations in thesaid lock strips. When this is done, it is evident that the grain doorcan not be raised without raising also the said lock bars 26, and as isevident, the said lock bars are held against further upward movement bythe lock blades 5 of the tubular rock shafts to which they are attached.

For the purpose of locking the lock bars 26 in their raised andoperative position, I provide so-called lock straps 30 which, at

' their outer ends, are hinged to the adjacent door posts 2 and at theirinner ends work between vertically spaced cars 31 on the said lock bars26 and fit into notches cut in the edges of the adjacent lock strips 25.Lock pins 32 passed through the cars 31 hold the 7 said lock straps 30interlocked with the said lock blades 5 ofthe rock shafts 4.

Preferably, the grain door is counter balanced in part by a weight 34which is connected to the lower door section 25 by cables 35 that arearranged to run over guide strips 36 shown as mounted in the exterior ofthe car body. If desired, the weight may be inclosed in a shield (notshown).

Directing attention again particularly to Fig. 5, it is evident that byextending the arms 10 of the vertical rock shafts 4:, the one inward andthe other outward, and directly connecting the same by a rod or link,the intermediate lever 12 might be dispensed with. In this case,however, the connecting rod 14 would preferably be connected directly toone of the arms 10 or to the link or rod used to connect them.

A. grain door of the character above described, as well as the graindoor set forth and broadly claimed in my prior application aboveidentified, serves to completely close the door opening and thereforemakes unnecessary the use of an outside door. This feature is highlyimportant because first, it saves the cost of an outside grain door, andsecond, because it simplifies the door mechan- 1s1n.

The construction illustrated in the drawings is especially adapted forapplication to old cars, or to cars already constructed, and for thisreason the pivotally mounted lock blades are located entirely within thedoor opening, and the door posts are not necessarily cut away to receivethem.

What I claim is:

1. The combination with a car body having stop cleats and pivoted lockblades applied tothe sides of the door opening, of a grain door movablelaterally through said door opening and adapted to be clamped betweensaid lock blades and stop cleats, co operating lock strips on said graindoor and on said lock blades having interlocking parts and one of whichlock strips is movable to engage and interlock with the cooperating lockstrip, and means for securing said movable lock strips in positionsinterlocked with the cooperating lock strips, substantially asdescribed.

2. The combination with a car body having stop cleats and pivoted lockblades applied to the sides of the door opening, a grain door made up ofsections and adapted to be clamped between said lock blades and stopcleats, perforated lock strips on said door sections, lock strips onsaid lock blades having lock projections insert-ible through theperforations of the lock strips on said door, an operating lever withconnections for imparting reverse oscillatory movements to said lookblades, and a lock device operative on said lever to cause the same tohold the look blades in operative positions, and operative on the lockstrips of said door and lock blades to hold the same interlocked,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I afliX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN EDMAN.

Witnesses:

MALIE HOEL, F. D. MERCHANT.

